


The Sailor Bold

by SheWhoWalksUnseen



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: And the Stans are PISSED, Bill is an asshole, Billdip Week, Dipper doesn't like loud noises, M/M, Mollusk is a gentle giant, Older!Dipper, Pirate!AU, Pirate!Bill, Protective!Dipper, Protective!Mabel, Siren!Dipper, Slow Burn, Stan is so done with these bastards, Wormwood is a sarcastic ass but I swear he isn't evil, You Have Been Warned, but tHEN YOU ALL WANTED A PLOT, like slow as HELL, pirate ocs galore I tell ya, siren!au, so here you go, this started out as a one-shot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-29
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-04-17 19:26:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4678508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SheWhoWalksUnseen/pseuds/SheWhoWalksUnseen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dipper really should have stayed back by the reef like Stan had told him to, but then again after their argument and discovering those pirates, his curiosity got the better of him and he just couldn't resist taking a look....</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I Carefully Did Stray

**Author's Note:**

> For day 6 of BillDip Week: Pirate/Siren AUs

 "Stupid Grunkle Stan," Dipper muttered under his breath, glaring up at the night sky he could see past the surface of the water. He had his arms crossed over his chest and a small flare of anger lit in his chest as he recalled the argument that had occurred not twenty minutes prior. So what if he had been visiting the surface daily? So what if he wanted to explore alongside the shoreline? It wasn't like any humans came by regularly; it was growing more difficult to get food other than fish and not many humans seemed to know where this island was. Either that or they knew better than to take a trip there. It wasn't like he was going to get captured by any humans anytime soon.

 The worst part was that his hatchmate hadn't even defended him from the accusations. Mabel had just hovered off to the side, her gaze not meeting either of the males'. She had known about his explorations for a while and promised not to say anything to Stan, but she hadn't made it a secret that she didn't like the idea of Dipper getting caught. She respected Stan's wishes most of the time about staying near the reef and after that one incident when they were eleven where a pair of sirens had gotten speared through the chest during a feeding excursion...

 Well, let's just say that it hadn't been a fun few days afterwards.

 Mabel had been more protective over him ever since, which was a switch given how he normally was the one worrying about her. She hadn't let him out of her sight at first, refusing to let him go to the surface even after they had devoured all of the crew members aboard the small ship that had been passing by. It had taken a great deal of convincing to allow his hatchmate to stop fretting over his well-being.

 He appreciated the concern. Really, he did. Days of watching his hatchmate worry herself over whether or not they would be accidentally hurt by one of the passing ships wasn't entertaining, though. The young siren knew she had been having nightmares for a bit after the incident and had to continuously reassure her that things would be okay.

 Nowadays it was only things such as going to the surface when Grunkle Stan had specifically told them not to that got her worried.

 He knew they were just looking out for him but it bugged him to no end that Mabel and Stan didn't let him do what he desired. It wasn't like he spent hours on end up at the surface! He was always careful, darting away if there was any sign of trouble. He wasn't foolish despite what Stan had said earlier.

 Dipper sighed, watching the stream of bubbles exhaled from his mouth float upwards. His blue tail fins flapped anxiously as he stared up at the stars similar to the ones under his bangs.

 They were probably going to come looking for him soon if they hadn't already. He wasn't supposed to be out so far from the reef. The siren couldn't help but feel a surge of defiance as he pictured Stan's face if he could see where the brunette was currently. It soon faded as he realized that that would only lead to further punishment once the older siren started yelling.

 Boy, he was going to be in so much trouble when Stan found him. He'd be lucky if he ever got to go to the surface again.

 A large dark shape obstructed his view of the stars suddenly, casting a shadow over the sea floor and the siren sitting on the rock under the surface. Dipper's brow furrowed as he uncrossed his arms over his chest and drifted up a little ways. His brown eyes were fixed on the shape intently. What was that?

 Dipper swam to the surface as the shadow passed, popping his head out of the water cautiously before his eyes grew wide. It was a small rowboat with four inhabitants - _humans_ \- sitting within as they rowed toward the nearby beach shore. Judging by their attire and the swords at their sides, they were pirates too. Glancing over his shoulder he spotted a much larger ship, pitch black with enormous sails, resting yards away.

 "What are they doing here?" he whispered to himself, ducking back under the surface to follow the rowboat to the shoreline. He didn't tail them closely, not wanting to be captured or killed. Curiosity bloomed in his chest as he watched them exit the boat. The tallest of the group was a blond dark-skinned man with an eyepatch stretched over one eye and an over-sized ebony hat, thick plumage adorning the accessory. He had to be the captain, given how his attire was much nicer than the others'. His sword was sheathed at his side and his good eye swept over the island with a strange gleam in it.

 Dipper swam over to a cluster of rocks jutting out of the water and hid behind them, listening to the pirates as they began to speak.

 "Bloody hell," a man with a mop of black hair and a scruffy beard grumbled loudly, grimacing as he and the other two men (who were identical, Dipper noticed now, with unruly red hair and a variety odd hooks embedded in their ears) stepped back from pulling the rowboat ashore. "This place is a bit too quiet, if you ask me."

 "Except nobody was, Wormwood."

 The two red-haired pirates guffawed at the captain's words and Wormwood shot them a glare. The captain didn't appear to care, instead walking a few feet in the direction of the rocks the siren was crouching behind. A small smirk tugged at the blond's lips. "Yes, this is definitely the place. Looks like that old coot wasn't bluffing when he said this island existed."

 "Didn't he say it was also infested with hellspawn?" the shorter twin sniggered and elbowed his brother. Only Dipper saw how the captain rolled his eyes before turning back to the trio.

 "He mentioned unsavory creatures, not hellspawn. Besides, I'm sure the crew would give them a good lashing if they dare to show themselves while we're here, aye?" This comment earned him a couple of chuckles and Wormwood even put his hand upon his sword with a smile. Dipper shuddered as he imagined being on the other end of that blade. "Now I want you to split up and search the island for anything inhabiting it, aye? Just in case that coot wasn't a liar and we're going to be expecting company."

 "Aye, Captain!" the twins spoke in unison before chuckling to themselves and heading off in the opposite direction to search along the other side of the island. Wormwood snorted and nodded at the blond, drawing his sharp blade. "Aye, Cipher. Don't let the devils getcha."

 The captain (What sort of name was Cipher? Then again, he was one to talk, given his nickname...) smirked and called after the other, "Oh, fuck off, ye dog." With that he strode down the sand, causing the hidden siren to duck furthermore behind the rocks. Dipper hesitantly peered out as he watched the pirate head down the shore, leaving him alone.

 Someone had told this crew about the sirens living around the island's boundaries. Something hard lodged itself in Dipper's throat at the thought. It was clear that this didn't mean anything good for the others; he had to tell them what he had seen. The brunette let go of the rocks and set his jaw determinedly. There couldn't be another spearing incident.

  _"I don't want you going up there, it's too dangerous! You don't know what humans are like, kid. Imagine if one saw you and we weren't there to help. Stay away from the surface and don't leave the reef!"_

 Stan's words echoed in his mind and the siren gritted his fangs together almost painfully. Anger rekindled itself in his chest. Why did his great-uncle think he knew better than him? As far as Dipper knew, nobody but him and occasionally Mabel went up to surface for anything other than feeding on visitors.

 What would Stan do if he got back and told him about the pirates? Would he scold the younger about visiting the surface _again_?

 "No," Dipper growled, glancing over at the pirate ship as he edged out of his hiding place, preparing to dive under. "I have to tell them. Even if Stan doesn't let me leave the reef anymore."

 "And what might you be?"

 Oh, hell.

 Dipper's eyes widened and he shrank back under the water a few inches as he turned around. Apparently the blond had doubled back and was now standing with one leg on the rock closest to the siren. He didn't like the leering grin that was spreading across the human's face at all.

  _Go, you idiot! Dive!_

 He made to swim for the reef quickly but before he could he felt a hand latch onto his hair and yank him back. He cried out, pushing at the captain's hand to get him to release his tight hold. A sword immediately found its way to his throat and he froze, swallowing hard. Dipper met Cipher's gaze and felt a shiver of fright run down his spine at the look in those dark orbs.

 "A siren," mused the captain, his grin only widening.

  _Oh, right._ He _was_ a siren, wasn't he?

 In retrospect, he probably should have thought of this before he was snatched up, but no matter.

 Dipper softly began to sing, fighting the urge to smile as the other looked startled by this change in tactic. He relaxed as the grip in his hair was relinquished and sank back into the water. His voice grew louder when he spotted how Cipher seemed to be trying to fight the melody's magic. They both knew that he wouldn't be able to. It was amusing nevertheless to watch Cipher try, and Dipper smiled as the pirate captain edged closer to the water.

 He had no intention of devouring the human however, and he began to back away carefully, ready to dive once the song ended. He could faintly hear shouting from the other pirates and knew he didn't have long before they came over as well. He wouldn't be able to hold all four of them off for long.

 Cipher's face contorted as he visibly struggled to stop himself from following the siren into the ocean. A small growl left his lips, eyes locked upon the scaled creature as it continued to hold him at bay. He knew well enough what these creatures did once they lured you in but that knowledge wasn't going to save him from the inevitable. His sword was slipping from his hand and he had never felt so helpless.

 The siren's voice quieted, the melody fading away as the song came to an end. The moment Cipher seemed to register this, Dipper dove underwater, swimming as fast as he could back towards the colony. His heart was hammering in his chest, nervous laughter bubbling against his lips. He just had to get the news back to the other sirens and warn them of the pirates. If they all banded together to sing to the crew like they usually did during feeding, surely they could take care of these intruders.

 "Stan is going to kill me," he groaned in a low tone, scrunching up his nose irritably.

 And meanwhile back at the water's edge as the three crew members of the _Mindscape_ rejoined Captain Bill Cipher, the blond's eyes narrowed for a few seconds as he took in this new development.

 "Gentlemen...We're going to need to find some wax and a strong net."


	2. Where I Met a Sailor Gay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a captain contemplates his plan and pair of sirens fight for their lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot believe you all convinced me to write more of this monstrosity. What did I do to deserve this? It's "Dark Stars" all over again, dammit!
> 
> (I also apologize for how shoddy this is. And for how long it took to get this out there in the first place. Thank you so much for all the comments and praise! I didn't plan on writing more of this, actually so...excuse the crappy plot and dialogue.)
> 
> All lyrics in the chapter titles and story title are from the "My Jolly Sailor Bold" song from Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Funny, that scene scares me death, yet I love the song itself. None of the lyrics are in order, sorry. If you want to see the full song, look it up and give it a listen.

 "Dipper! Where have you been?" The male siren let out a loud yelp as he collided with a blur of pink scales and brown curls before realizing they belonged to his hatchmate Mabel. He hugged her back, still shaking a little from the incident before, and this didn't miss Mabel's notice. She immediately swam back a few feet to examine his face, her expression scrunched up with worry as she gazed at him. "What's wrong? What happened?"

 "No time to explain. I have to tell the others," Dipper said quickly, slightly out of breath. He started to swim past her only for Mabel to pull him back by his tail with concern glittering in her eyes.

 "Dipper, tell me quickly. You look like you were just spotted by some humans!"

 He flinched and the pink-finned siren's eyes bulged.

 "You _were - ?!"_

 "That's the least of our worries right now, Mabel!" Dipper snapped, grabbing her shoulders tightly. "There are pirates on the island nearby, loads of them if their large ship is anything to go by, and they know we're here too."

 "Probably because they saw you!"

 The brunette fought the urge to shake her, instead biting his lower lip. "Okay, that's partly the reason. But they were told beforehand by some elderly man they kept talking about, they said he was crazy."

 Mabel froze, her eyes narrowing in thought. "That doesn't explain how he knew we were here and lived to tell the tale..."

 "Exactly. That's why we need to tell the Stans and everyone else in the colony. They're going to come after the rest of us, I just know it."

 Mabel swallowed hard and he watched her expression shift between a myriad of emotions for a minute. She was terrified, just as he was, and the confusion of it all was overwhelming. However her face finally changed into one of determination and he knew she was on his side.

 "Right. Let's go tell them."

 

**````````**

 

Captain Bill Cipher was not one for humoring people. Especially when they couldn't think for themselves. That was probably the reason why there were no ignorant people onboard his own ship.

 However there certainly were some days where he desired nothing more than to plunge his sword straight through his crew members' hearts.

 "I told you there was something fishy about that there island!"

 "Me? You were the one blabbing about how that old coot was mad not moments before!"

 "Why you - !"

 "Would you both shut your traps before I make you walk the plank!" Cipher snarled, whipping around from where he stood at the rail of the _Mindscape_ , satisfied at the look of slight fright on both crew members' faces. The red-haired twins grimaced before scurrying off to argue elsewhere. The blond snorted loudly, shaking his head as he turned back towards the horizon.

 The captain had not stopped dwelling on the incident on the isle. He admittedly had taken the elderly man's warning as a grain of salt (they had found him in the marketplace on their way out of Boston after smuggling some goods, and he had been screaming a good deal of mad phrases such as, "Oh, donkey spittle!" at random moments) but after that encounter with that siren... Cipher's face stretched wide into a smirk as he recalled the look of utter terror that initially struck the creature's lovely face. Of course then it had seemed to remember that it could always sing to keep him away, and this memory caused Cipher to scowl.

 He hated feeling helpless.

 The good news was, if there was one siren sneaking about, there definitely had to be more. And judging by the direction that little fish had swam off in, he was going to assume that it had a whole colony not far from the island.

 Most of the crew had been shaken by the news of what had occurred at first, but once he explained how the wax should help them fall deaf to any possibility of the haunting melodies causing them to throw themselves overboard they became more agreeable. Cipher was pleased with how loyal his crew was. Mutinies were practically unheard of, and if they did occur, they were swiftly silenced.

 After all he was not called the All-Seeing Eye for nothing.

 "Captain?" The blond pirate glanced beside him to find Wormwood, his hearty first mate, standing there. He grinned at the dark-haired man, straightening but not turning fully away from the horizon.

 "Aye?"

 "What exactly are your plans for these little devils?"

 Cipher raised an eyebrow as he noticed the large man's face shift into a mask of nonchalance. "Oh? Feeling worried about it, are we?" He snickered as Wormwood flushed and started to protest, waving him off with a dismissive hand. "I am only teasing. Calm yourself, mate."

 Wormwood scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest as the captain leaned forward against the rail, face turning toward the open sea once more. He had been Cipher's first mate for over three years yet he still had a difficult time understanding the man's sense of humor. Particularly since it was hard to tell whenever he was being sarcastic or not with that mischievous gleam constantly in his eyes.

 "Since you inquired so eagerly," Cipher spoke up after a second or two, "my current plan for these creatures is to find them all...and to make certain that none of them live to tell the tale. Of course, keeping one for trade or research purposes would be intriguing as well, if we could stand to get close enough to nab one."

 The first mate's jaw nearly dropped in surprise before he quickly forced himself to regain his composure, turning away. "Keep one? Cipher, those beasts aren't good news. If there really are more of 'em, we'll be goners."

 A low chuckle rose from the throat of the blond. "You think I'm being ridiculous, Wormwood? I know what sirens are."

 "I only meant - "

 "I know what they can do to humans, particularly unsuspecting men," Cipher continued, shooting a look at the other. "But no one's ever caught one. Escaped, aye, which is entirely possible at this point, but caught one of those little devils? We could be the first to get them. Think about it! Just finding one and then slipping out of this place - it's a sure way to start a new trade route. I'm almost certain that quite a good amount of people would pay lots of gold for a real siren, Wormwood."

 The dark-haired man swallowed and nodded curtly as he glanced back at the captain. The idea of catching the siren wasn't terrifying; he had dealt with all sorts of odd creatures on the seas over the years he had been a pirate, especially with Cipher's crew. However, the thought of the monster singing... It admittedly made him more anxious than he wanted to be.

"So this is all a plot to catch those little buggers for gold?"

Cipher hummed for a moment, his gaze fixed on the ocean at the horizon's edge in an almost disturbing manner.

"And here I thought you were growing dim-witted on me. But aye, for research or financial purposes only."

The blond had his eye on one siren in particular as well. Not that he needed to say it aloud to Wormwood for him to understand.

No one, siren or human, made Captain Bill Cipher look weak and got away intact, after all.

 "But...Captain, what about the...? You know..." Wormwood struggled to find the right phrasing for this inquiry, not wanting to set off the man. Cipher snorted however, understanding what his first mate was trying to tell him. Ah, yes. Their whole purpose for coming here in the first place. After all, coming to this island hadn't been a solely siren-centric quest.

 "Oh, we'll have time to get that later on, ye landlubber. Right now we need to deal with this little infestation issue. Besides," the blond turned to smile wickedly at the darker-haired pirate, "maybe the rascals can show us the way, eh? So how about we ready that rowboat?"

 

````````

 

 There was only one place Dipper could be alone at a time like this and not have to worry about his uncles finding him. He blew a few unhappy bubbles as he rested his face halfway above the surface, his arms tucked under his chin as he lay on a rock just below the water level. Only Mabel knew about this cave, having trailed after her hatchmate here a few times to tease him a little about "escaping the others". She never said anything about it to either Stan, though, and he knew she was only teasing playfully.

 She understood that he wanted some solitude to mull things over occasionally.

 The two young sirens had found their guardians and Dipper had recounted his escape from the pirates, grimacing at how furious Stanley had been. Grunkle Ford, on the other hand, had appeared worried about the prospect of being pursued by these crew members, not liking how Dipper had said that they seemed more determined than the others.

 None of the sirens knew what the humans even wanted. They had dismissed the tales of the deaths surrounding the island as mad until they had spotted Dipper. What would they do now? Would they come after the rest of the creatures?

 Ford had left to go warn the rest of the colony, warning Stan to watch the two younger sirens. Much to Dipper's dismay, the older siren had taken the warning to heart and hadn't let Dipper leave the area without his eyes upon him. It had been entirely frustrating and despite the reassuring words from his hatchmate that it would end soon, he couldn't help but feel like he was being punished too harshly. He was old enough to look out for himself, after all. He didn't need Grunkle Stan to watch his every move.

 The blue-tailed siren had escaped the watchful gaze of his guardians to head to his favorite quiet spot, needing to be alone with his thoughts. He wasn't too far from his colony so it wasn't as if he weren't able to get back in time if he happened to be spotted again. The idea of leading the pirates right to his home was unsettling, however, and his stomach instantly began to churn in displeasure at this. He shivered, and not from the feeling of the water droplets running down the side of his face.

 Why was it always him who got the others into trouble? Even Mabel didn't seem to have this much of a problem with messing up.

 Dipper's fins flicked the surface of the water out of annoyance and he pulled his head down a little to rest it on his arms under the surface, eyes shut tightly.

 What did Ford think the colony would be able to do to help, anyways? The last time someone had almost found the colony, they had panicked and nearly gotten them all swimming straight into an ambush from a pirate crew. Thankfully some brave souls had distracted the ship and allowed the others to escape and migrate to a new area, managing to lure the crew members to their deaths with only a little difficulty. Did he really want another incident like that?

 There was something off about this captain. His crew weren't the brightest from what Dipper had gathered from the tidbits of conversation he had heard, but Captain Cipher... His mind flashed back to how the blond had gripped his hair tightly, the leering grin that had stretched almost inhumanly across his face, the cold metal of the sword pressing against his pale throat. Dipper shivered again, his hands coming to grip at his hair, careful to bypass his gills. He didn't want to think about what would have happened if he had not thought to sing to the captain.

 A sharp cry echoed under the surface, along with some faint splashing, and Dipper's eyes grew wide as they shot open. He knew that voice.

 "Mabel!" He swam as fast as he could out of the cave, his gaze soon finding a horrific sight. A rowboat with three pirates (Wormwood, a dark-skinned buff pirate he didn't recognize, and _Cipher_ ) was floating on the surface not fifty feet away from where he was, all gripping tight onto a large net.

 The worst part was that inside of the net, tangled up in the ropes and trying to use her fangs and talons to claw through the trap, was his hatchmate.

 Her eyes shot up as he swam closer, fear and panic alight in her whole face. "Dipper! Help me!"

 "What are you even doing here?" Dipper cried, yanking down on the net as he attempted to tear apart the ropes as well. "Where's Grunkle Stan?"

 "He noticed you left and he told me to stay put while he went to find you but I knew you had gone this way. I got trapped in this net before I could get to the cave! It's the pirates, isn't it?" He didn't like how Mabel was trembling slightly and wanted to reach through the net to hug her, but now wasn't the time. He had to free her before it was too late.

 "Yes. I recognize two of them up there, one being the captain," he admitted.

 Mabel's eyes widened almost comically as she assisted Dipper at tearing into the ropes near his. "Wasn't he the one who - ?"

 "Who almost caught me before? Yes." Seeing how scared she was, he sent her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. I'm going to get you out of here, Mabel. I won't let him take you."

 The net started to rise again and Dipper abandoned the task of trying to tear apart those ropes (gosh, how did they find such a strong net?) to work on dragging the net down. He could see the humans struggling above the surface, yelling at each other and straining not to fall over the side. Still, they clung onto his hatchmate's makeshift cage and he snarled, yanking harder. Like _hell_ were they taking Mabel from him.

 "Keep ripping at those ropes!" he told his hatchmate. "And swim down if you can! We might be able to drag them under if you can't break the ropes in time!"

 Mabel nodded, her fangs latching onto the binding once more. They both swiftly realized that Mabel wouldn't be able to swim downward due to her tail fins being wrapped in the rope, probably from when she had been struggling moments before. Dipper gritted his own fangs together as his palms burned from rubbing the ropes against his skin. He couldn't let go, though. Not when Mabel was depending on him.

 There was a muffle shout from above and one of the pirates (the one called Wormwood, he noted) let go of the net momentarily to snatch ropes of the net below the surface, dragging them upward. Dipper and Mabel both let out exclamations of shock at the sharp jerk up, horrified at how close Mabel's head was to breaking the surface of the sea. This only renewed their battle, gnawing and yanking on the net fiercely, frantically trying to free the pink-tailed female.

 Fortunately, the ropes were fraying enough around where Mabel was tearing the net apart for her to break them and slip out more than halfway. Dipper immediately set to work with struggling to help his hatchmate wriggle out of what was wrapped about her tail. He tore desperately at the ropes, not hearing Mabel's shriek of warning before it was too late. A hand dug into his hair, causing memories of earlier to appear before his eyes, and the siren let go with one hand to slash at the human's skin blindly. There was a muffled bellow from above and the hand vanished, letting him return to the task at hand.

 He had almost freed the last of Mabel's fin when the weight on the net shifted - lighter than before which was odd - and a stronger hand gripped his curls tightly. Dipper's head snapped back as it yanked him upward, away from the net as Mabel screamed for him, and horror spread through his body as he met the dark familiar gaze of Captain Cipher.

 Mabel managed to pull herself out of the ropes of the ripped net and started for him only to be stopped by the shaking of his head, which hurt more than he cared to admit aloud. "No! Go get help! Go get Grunkle Stan and get more of the colony! The more sirens there are, the better chance we have of getting rid of them!"

 "But - !"

 "Go!"

 "I won't leave you with these monsters!" Mabel yelled, torn as she watched her hatchmate's head be yanked up to the surface.

 " _Go, Mabel! Please!_ "

 He sent her a pleading look before he lost sight of his hatchmate altogether, practically thrown onto the rowboat. Cipher's rough hand didn't leave his brown curls however and he gasped in pain as his head was tugged backward so he could see the wide almost inhuman grin on the captain's face. He hoped that Mabel was listening to him and swimming away as fast as she could, especially when his stomach dropped at the sight of a wad of yellowing wax stuffed in each of the human's ears. The siren guessed that the other crew members on the rowboat had similar makeshift ear plugs.

 Even singing wouldn't work this time. The captain had made sure that the siren wouldn't be able to escape.

 "Hurry up and take this vessel back, dogs!" Cipher gestured at the pirates, who Dipper spotted nod and grab oars out of the corner of his eyes. It seemed like Wormwood was the one that he had grazed with his talons for he winced while gripping the instrument and blood was beginning to bubble on the back of his hand.

 Being out of the ocean was already beginning to affect him; Dipper could feel his gills contracting as he struggled to breathe, trembling as the water began drying on his pale form. He struggled in the blond pirate's grasp, gasping as he struggled for breath. Nausea was forming in his stomach and he shut his eyes tightly to fight the urge to throw up his last meal.

 "Oh, don't worry, poor thing," Cipher said with mocking affection, chuckling at how the brunette shuddered in fright. "I think you and I are going to become _great friends_ , don't you think?"

  _No,_ Dipper thought desperately, his eyes opening as he heard various faint shouts and jeers from a familiar ship. Hadn't the ship been by the isle before? Dread crept through his heart as he sucked in a shaky breath. Had they _followed him_ here?

 The last thing he spied before his vision started to go black was the golden lettering on the side of the hull that read _The Mindscape_.


	3. Who Seem'd to Be in Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which information is refused stubbornly and whispers fly.

  _Screaming and clawing. There was no sound that left his lips however; everything he desired to cry was silent and straining to escape him._

_Everything ached sharply, cutting quick like a steel blade._

_Where was he?_

_Jostling about. Struggling for air._

_A loud splash resounding in his ears, gills heaving as he tried to cling to the precious oxygen._

_Why did it feel as if he had lost a fight with a sea serpent?_

_When would the throbbing go away?_

_Oxygen slowly entered his lungs, his breathing shallow for a few moments before he gathered enough to take in deeper breaths. Soon it all went dark and the peaceful surrender blocked out any and all unwanted sensations._

 

_````````_

 

 The world was pitch black, closing in around him. His head throbbed; it felt as if someone had thrown an anvil against it repeatedly. A low groan resounded in his throat, a couple of coughs as he grimaced in pain. He brought his hands up to his head and tried rubbing it to relieve some of the ache, but to no avail. As he became more and more aware of his surroundings, he registered the uncomfortable position his tail was in, cramped up against something rough and solid.

 He had never fallen asleep in the cave like this before. Had he just dozed off and Mabel hadn't come to find him? Then again, the cave's surface wasn't quite as rough, not like this...

 "Looks like your slumber has come to an end, aye?"

 Dipper's eyes shot open despite the pain behind his temples. His breathing quickened when he realized that he didn't recognize the room he was in - _room?!_ \- and that he was barely underwater. The siren's head swiveled around and the anxiety blooming in his heart steadily grew when he saw he was in a large glass tank. His head was halfway under the water, his eyes peeking out over the prison. His blue tail was bent at an awkward angle and every time he tried to uncoil it, a sharp gasp rose from his lips. His eyes widened further upon taking note of the cloth shoved in his mouth, gagging him effectively in case he tried to sing his way out of the situation. He wanted to scream out of irritation; a siren without his voice was practically useless.

 The walls around him stunk of something putrid he soon recognized as blood (he had smelled it often enough during feeding, after all) and he wrinkled his nose at a couple of blatant stains on the dark floor in front of him. It was rather dark in this room - but no, it wasn't quite a room, Dipper corrected himself internally. The only light was coming from the open trapdoor a few yards off, beyond multiple steel bars that made up yet another sort of cage that he had been placed into. It was as if whoever had taken him had been attempting to ensure that he was as uncomfortable as possible.

 Realizing he had been spoken to, he connected gazes with the blond pirate standing in the entrance of the caged room (who he wished would stop smirking so smugly, like he was a hunk of meat ready to be thrown to the wolves). Memories of trying to rescue his hatchmate from the net, being pulled out of the ocean by the hair, _the pirates_ _taking him instead_ flooded back to him. Dread crept into his stomach within mere moments, the panic rising as he bit his lip.

 He hadn't thought through this at all. Now he was captured and they were going to do who-knows-what to him and what was he supposed to do? It wasn't as if he could flop back into the sea on his own. He'd probably run out of air by the time he got out onto the deck.

 At least Mabel was alright. That thought caused him to relax slightly, reassured by the thought that they clearly hadn't caught his hatchmate.

 Better him than Mabel.

 "Funny, you don't seem so talkative now that you're all alone in the brig, kid!" Dipper's gaze shot back up to Cipher's and he willed himself not to react as the blond dangled the keys to the brig from one hand almost tauntingly. Cipher snickered quietly before stuffing them into his coat. "All it takes is to put you in a cage to shut your kind up?"

 Dipper glared at the pirate. He reached up and tugged at the gag only to hear heavy footfalls coming closer a second after his hand had moved.

 "Ah, ah, ah!" The brunette's nostrils flared and he paused in his actions. "I'm not as dense as you think. Hands off."

 This earned Cipher another glare and he rolled his eyes, hand moving to his sword at his side. "Well, if you insist on having me threaten you..."

 Dipper scowled at the weapon, but he removed his hands. He pretended not to observe how satisfied the other appeared at the act of submission. Irritation built up inside of him at how Cipher seemed to _ooze_ confidence, as if he didn't have a care in the world. The siren hadn't even been thinking of singing, just of tearing the disgusting piece of cloth out from between his lips so he didn't have to awkwardly swallow around it.

 He was tempted to just disobey and take it out but he'd seen how quick the man could be with a sword. He would probably slit his throat before Dipper could yank it down a centimeter.

 "Now that we've established that little _rule_ ," the captain declared, releasing his grip on the weapon and stepping closer to the tank. Dipper considered it a little victory that Cipher didn't seem comfortable with being anywhere within ten feet of the glass. However the brief flicker of unease vanished just as quickly as it had come with his next words. "I think you ought to know where you'll be staying for a while, aye?"

 "A while?" the siren tried to say in disbelief, although thanks to the gag it came out more like "Ah whihmm?" His scowl darkened at the obvious amusement in the blond's eyes. He highly doubted that they had the same definition of "a while", considering how he was pretty certain he wouldn't be getting back to his colony anytime soon.

 "Yes, a while. Surely even you fish folk know what that means?"

 Dipper _really_ wanted to rip the smug look off the infuriating captain's face.

 "Speaking of fish, where did that one disappear off to, hmm?" Dipper schooled his expression into a blank slate as Cipher studied him, waiting for some form of a reaction or answer. He knew exactly what the human was talking about but there was no way he was about to reveal where his hatchmate had gone. "That one caught in the net. Surely you remember?"

 Though his tone was mock teasing, a warning flashed in the captain's eyes. Still the brunette did nothing but stare with disinterest back at him, refusing to tell where Mabel was.

 After a couple more silent moments, Cipher seemed to sense that he wouldn't be getting anything out of the siren and leaned back, an eyebrow raised.

 "Nothing? No clue?" Dipper crossed his arms over his chest firmly, eyes narrowing in the slightest way at the other. "Ah, no matter. I suppose they went back to the colony, aye?"

 Dipper was unable to disguise the flicker of shock on his face before Cipher took note of the reaction and a broad grin spread over his face. "Ha! Don't look so surprised, kid! Like I said earlier, I'm not ignorant. How do you think we found you a second time, after all?"

 Those words caused him to flinch but the siren played it off with a fierce scowl in the pirate's direction. He really didn't need to be reminded of the fact that it was his fault his hatchmate had nearly been captured in his place, that if he hadn't heard her and rescued her in time... He inwardly shook himself at the dark path his thoughts were taking. Now wasn't the time to be dwelling on the past.

 Captain Cipher walked closer to the tank, only a foot away when he came to a stop, casually resting his hand on his sword at his side (though Dipper knew better than to think such a gesture in front of him _wasn't_ meant to be intimidating, especially considering the dark edges at the corners of the human's eyes). "Now I hope you understand that I don't mean to let another little _incident_ happen like last time, aye? I don't take kindly to others attempting to pull the wool over my eyes." The grip on the sword tightened in warning, which didn't escape Dipper's notice.

 "So where, precisely, is this colony of yours?" Despite the almost nonchalant tone, the obvious threat underlying in his hitch-pitched voice was clear.

 Yet Dipper merely shrugged, a small smirk twitching on his lips at how the man's brow furrowed in annoyance. He gestured faintly to the gag and gave another shrug.

 "I'm not letting you sing," Cipher responded, still thinking the worst in the siren. The pirate straightened and he observed how he seemed to be contemplating a decision in his mind. Dipper leaned back against the glass of the tank, trying not to let on how painful it was to be sitting at such an uncomfortable position. He shook his head at the pirate and wrinkled his nose to show he wasn't thinking of singing. Besides, what good would that do other than give him an easy meal? It wasn't like he would be able to persuade the man to throw him back into the sea.

 This time Cipher gave the appearance that he comprehended what was being conveyed yet he snorted.

 "I've met better liars among my own crew. I won't be taking any chances with you, fish face. If you aren't going to talk then enjoy your time here in the brig." With that he turned and locked the cell door behind him, a smirk of his own growing when he saw the huff of irritation from the siren. The trapdoor soon shut after the captain vanished up onto the deck again, and Dipper was left in near darkness with only his thoughts and the sound of the waves lapping against the pirate ship to keep him company.

 It only took him a few moments for him to rip out the gag, allowing it to rest around his neck in case he needed to stuff it back in for appearances. Foolish humans, thinking a simple piece of cloth was going to stop him from talking. Sure, they might have figured out a solution with the wax but clearly they didn't think about the fact that he could simply take out the gag himself. He worked his jaw for a minute before settling on a scowl (which, to anyone who might have been there at the time, might have looked more like a pout).

 He hoped that Mabel had taken his advice and had gone to grab Stan and Ford, or the rest of the colony, for help. If the pirates above weren't wearing the wax in their ears then they could bring down the crew easily.

 Dipper blew a few depressingly tiny bubbles as he glanced down at his tail, leaning away from the wall of the glass prison. There was barely any room for him to stretch out his fins and he already felt homesick for the sea. How was he supposed to pass the time down here when he could hardly move about. Dipper groaned loudly, flopping his head forward so that it was submerged under the water level.

 He needed to figure out some semblance of a plan in case assistance didn't appear in time. There was no doubt in his mind that Cipher didn't have good intentions for knowing the whereabouts of his colony and while he could deny the information for as long as possible, he knew pirates could be cruel. He wrapped his arms around himself as he pictured cannon fire into the sea, wicked laughter as sirens were torn apart, struggling to flee from the oncoming mass of the merciless.

 There was no way he was going to sit by and let that happen.

 

**````````**

 

 "How much do you know about sirens?" Wormwood inquired, turning partway towards the massive crew member beside him as he busied himself with tying off one of the lines. The large ebony-skinned pirate (whom had been dubbed Mollusk by Cipher long before Wormwood had joined the crew of the _Mindscape_ ) glanced at him with his usual unreadable expression, an eyebrow raised in inquiry. Mollusk didn't speak much, except occasionally to people he deemed of importance, so it was often a game of guessing with the pirate.

 However Mollusk chose to speak now instead of initiating the usual charades, which was a bit of a relief.

 "Not much more than you." His voice was low, smooth like ocean. "Why do you ask?"

 The first mate shrugged nonchalantly, dropping his hands back to his side once the line was secure.

 "I'm just curious, you bugger. And I know next to nothing other than they drive men mad, only to devour them."

 Mollusk nodded slowly, looking out in the direction of the island. They had drifted back that way once the anchor was lifted, thinking that the captain would have sent them back to the island for their original purpose. The minute Captain Cipher had noticed, though, he had bellowed at the crew for doing so and they had lowered the anchor once more. Wormwood couldn't help but recall their previous conversation about finding the other sirens. Surely they wouldn't be going after _all_ of the devils, aye?

 He absentmindedly rubbed the bandaged wound on his hand, where that blue-scaled siren had bitten him. He didn't trust these creatures. The sooner they got rid of them, the better.

 "I know that they live in colonies, depending on the area," Mollusk spoke up after a minute. "There are rumors that sirens can walk on land as well, but I do not believe them. If that was true things would be different."

 "What are you going on about?" Wormwood asked, puzzled over the man's cryptic speech.

 "The siren in the brig would have surely been able to escape on foot if able to walk, aye? And since he has not, I do not believe he can."

 "Good thing too," the first mate of the _Mindscape_ grumbled, shielding his eyes from the sun as it started to rise higher in the sky. It had only been a few hours since they had captured the creature, near morning now. He was already starting to feel an ache in his bones from lack of sleep. "If it sprouts a pair of legs, I'll gladly shoot 'em before it can run."

 Mollusk frowned and turned back to say something, but he was interrupted by a loud slamming of the trapdoor to the brig below. The captain blew some hair out of his eyes, withdrawing his sword as he walked across the deck. Not many crew members were awake, some having been asleep since dinner due to drinking far too much. Those who _were_ up watched from a respectable distance as the captain stormed up the steps to the wheel. A couple glanced back at brig with uneasy gleams in their eyes.

 Sensing this as his cue, Wormwood sighed and hurried after Cipher, not too surprised to find that he was gripping the wheel tightly with a glower on his face. Even though the ship was anchored, the dark-haired pirate knew that his captain found a small amount of comfort in steering the _Mindscape_ and just holding onto the wheel seemed to be helping. If he noticed Wormwood was approaching, he said nothing of it.

 "What bit your ass?"

 Cipher's eyes, murky and full of frustration, remained fixed on the dark wood of the wheel as he answered in a low voice. "Our guest doesn't want to divulge any information about the whereabouts of the rest of his kind. Which would be _peachy_ if I wasn't thinking about the fact that he likely knows where our little treasure is."

 Footsteps trudged carefully up the steps behind Wormwood. He guessed it was Mollusk; the pirate was normally fairly good at reasoning with the captain when he was pissed off his rocker.

 "How do you know the siren knows its location, Captain?" the first mate questioned. "Did it say so?"

 Cipher turned his glare onto him but he didn't flinch. "No. I'm not ignorant enough to let it sing, much less speak, without a gag."

 "Then how do you - ?"

 "Because I have this feeling in my gut that tells me he's being stubborn!" The blond slammed a hand against the wood of the ship angrily. Neither crew member reacted, simply waiting for the captain to calm himself down. "I know the fish is hiding something, and until he does reveal what he knows he's not getting anything from me."

 Mollusk paused a moment before speaking slowly. "Captain, he's no good to us dead if he doesn't eat."

 "That risks removing that gag, which could damn us all!" Wormwood replied before the other could talk, glaring down at the brig. "It's probably plotting the moment to strike this very instant."

 "The siren is not an _it_ ," Mollusk said. The underlying sternness in his tone caught the first mate off-guard for a minute. "He likely feels frightened and alone."

 Wormwood opened his mouth to disprove this statement, but the firm look in the large man's eyes caused him to shut it swiftly. He remembered being told of how the pirate had been formerly a slave before joining the crew of the _Mindscape_. A nagging sensation in his gut told him that this creature's situation might be bringing back those memories for Mollusk; he wrinkled his nose in distaste at the idea.

 "However the damned devil feels," Cipher snapped, drawing the two men's attention back to his white-knuckled grip on the wheel, "he is withholding information. Give him food if you have to, but I would rather _not_ lose valuable crew members to that siren's song. Let him starve if he's being ridiculous."

 The pirate nodded silently at the captain before turning and walking back down the stairs.

 "What is it with the rest of the crew down there?" the captain demanded, gesturing toward the only other living souls awake on deck.

 "What do you mean, Captain?"

 Cipher rolled his eyes in an almost exaggerated motion. "They keep looking to the brig and flitting about like bees around honey. Honestly, it's as if - " He fell silent in moments, eyes narrowing dangerously. The first mate didn't dare speak, sensing that the blond was piecing together the meaning behind the situation himself.

 "It's the damn siren, isn't it?"

 "Aye, Captain. They've been talking about the thing since we brought it onboard. Something about bad luck and other mumbo jumbo. The crew is just anxious, 'tis all."

 "Anxious." Nostrils flared for a second beside Wormwood as the captain continued to stare down at his jittery crew. "I'm not underestimating the siren's abilities in the way a fool would, but surely they know that precautions are being taken."

 "They know this, Captain."

 Cipher's eyes met Wormwood's, something unreadable flickering in those dark depths. The latter fought the urge to shudder as a sense of warning rushed over him. Damn, he should have told Mollusk to wait until the captain was calmer before running off to feed the creature.

 "I think it's a little time for a chat with the rest of these landlubbers, aye? After all, there will be no superstitions flying about on my ship as long as I live..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More of a filler before shit starts going down next chapter. After all, we have to see what happened to Mabel and whether a rescue mission is at hand, aye?
> 
>  
> 
> YO YO YO YO
> 
> LOOK AT LUCILEQUIQUEMPOIS' ARTWORK OF THE ROWBOAT SCENE IN THE LAST CHAPTER: http://lucilequiquempois.tumblr.com/post/131496275422/sooooooooooooo-i-really-appreciate-the-fact-that  
> IT'S FUCKING GORGEOUS AND IT'S ONLY SKETCHES
> 
> Also I threw together a vague playlist of songs I use when writing this fic here, if any of you want to listen to it: http://callonielb.tumblr.com/post/131847094824/check-out-this-playlist-on-8tracks-the-sailor


	4. I Fear You'll Ne'er Return Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which comfort is given unexpectedly and a rescue mission is inevitable.

"HE'S _WHERE?!_ "

 "He... They took him, Grunkle Stan." Mabel sniffed, rubbing at her eyes as she tried to hold back the wave of terror in her chest. Everything inside felt constricting. Being without her hatchmate, knowing that he was probably going to be hurt or _worse_ by these pirates - it was frightening.

 Mabel flinched and swam back a few inches as Stan punched the wall of the cave beside him. The fury in his gaze was making her more uneasy than she already felt. She couldn't blame him for reacting this way, honestly.

 "Stanley, calm down," Ford said, his voice level as he glared at his hatchmate. Whilst he looked like he was keeping his cool on the outside, the female siren knew he was scared and worrying inside. She could see the flickering of worry in his very eyes. "Everything is going to be okay."

 "How can you say that?" Stan turned and glared right back at Ford, holding his now-bruised fist with one hand. "It's not like he can just hop off the ship and come back, Poindexter!"

 "Dipper's smart and resourceful. He knows how to take care of himself."

 Stan rolled his eyes. "He's been going up to the surface for months even after we told him not to. He almost got caught once before, and now he's on that damn ship, probably having who-knows-what done to him!"

 "You're acting like they're going to experiment on him," Ford replied coolly. "In all our years, have you ever met a pirate smart enough to use those kinds of practices on a siren?"

 Mabel shuddered at the idea of being poked and prodded like she was an animal. Those pirates had certainly looked mean enough to do that sort of thing. Especially that blond one, with the dark eyes. That one seemed more intelligent than the other two, terrifying in a way she could not quite place her finger on.

 The thought of her hatchmate being alone on the ship with that monster was enough to make tears prick her eyes. Why did Dipper have to be such a martyr?

 Stan appeared to have noticed her distress because his gaze softened and he swam over to her. He slung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into a one-armed hug lightly. "It's going to be alright, kid. I'm not letting the bastards leave this part of the ocean with your hatchmate, even if I have to swim to the ends of the earth."

 Mabel sent him a small smile. "I saw what direction they went. We can catch them if we hurry, although I don't know if three sirens will be enough to stall the crew - "

 "I think it might be safer if you stay here though, Mabel."

 She glanced between the two elder sirens in disbelief, panic rising in her chest. "Wh - What?"

 "I know you want to find Dipper," Ford said gently, his brows furrowing. "But we can't lose you too. We'll be back with Dipper before you know it. Stay with Wendy until we get back."

 "What? No!"

 Stan sighed. "Mabel - "

 She pulled herself out of his grasp, eyes widening. "Please, I need to find Dipper! You can't just leave me behind. I can help!"

 "We just want to protect you," Stan countered. The gloom creeping into his gaze scared her. She knew he was already planning on rushing in and attacking the crew. He wasn't going to let Dipper stay onboard any longer than he had to be. And while she loved Grunkle Stan with all her heart, sometimes he didn't think straight when he was furious. He let his fists do the talking and it got him hurt when he acted impulsively.

  _Sort of like me, I suppose_ , Mabel couldn't help but think to herself. A twinge of sadness lurked in her own heart at this.

 "I can take care of myself just fine."

 Ford swam closer, gesturing toward the world outside their cave. "We know, Mabel. But it's safer for you to stay behind. If we need help, we'll return and ask for it. Stan and I need to examine this ship first, see what these pirates are like. If they are ridiculous and gullible like most of the pirates we've encountered, we should be able to get Dipper back.  No human can resist a siren's song, after all."

 "But - "

 "Mabel, please." The resolute look Ford gave her said he wasn't budging. Her heart sank. Grunkle Ford was less likely to cave than Grunkle Stan. "I'll go fetch Wendy and let her know what's happening. Stay with her at all times. With these pirates here, the ocean isn't safe for a lone siren."

 She nodded glumly and watched him go, plopping down on a large rock with a huff. She rested her chin on her fist, giving Grunkle Stan the widest and most pleading gaze possible. The older siren caught on quickly and shook his head.

 "Ford's right, sweetie. It's easier to go on our own. What if you came and those pirates nabbed you too? The best thing you can do for now is stay safe."

 "But I want to help!" Mabel flung one arm out in the direction she had watched the pirates go. "They took Dipper! He saved me and I can't leave him alone with those awful humans!"

 "That's why we're going to get him back." Stan sat beside her and she buried her face in his broad shoulder with a grumble.

 "I feel so helpless."

 Stan frowned down at her and patted her shoulder. "You're not helpless. Believe me, you've got a left hook that could send a grown siren flying. You're smart just like your hatchmate, and if you were in his situation, you know what he'd be doing?"

 "Trying to find me," Mabel answered quietly. She could practically hear the despair in Dipper's voice as she imagined him yelling at their guardians for not letting him go after her. The image transformed into Dipper tearing away at the netting encasing her, desperation shining in his face before a meaty hand sank under the surface and entwined its digits in his hair. She swallowed down a lump at the memory.

 "Exactly. That idiot would be going ballistic. He'd probably swim off on his own without telling us just to go after you." He snorted, shaking his head.

 Mabel looked down at her hands resting against her pink tail. Light reflected off of her scales and glittered faintly on her hands. With no one else around, it looked so peaceful down here. The seaweed not twelve yards off rustled in the current, waving serenely. A pair of fish with dull scales swam by, hardly paying the sirens any mind. They didn't seem to be in any rush to get where they were going.

 "Look, kid." The brunette turned back to her guardian. Her eyes met his and his stare softened in intensity. "I'm sure he'll be alright once we get to him. He is probably just as frightened as we are. You trust me, right?"

 "Of course," Mabel responded without any hesitation.

 "Then trust me when I say that if that crew harms a hair on his head, I will make them pay." The dark flash in his eyes was only visible for an instant, but it didn't miss Mabel's sharp eye. "No one kidnaps my family and gets away with it."

 She smiled sadly and bumped Stan on the shoulder. "I know. I'm worried for him, though."

 "Well, cheer up!" Stan plastered a broad smile on his face. If it seemed a little forced, she didn't comment on it. "Dipper's bound to be thinking of his own escape plan, kid. Don't you worry. One way or another, we're going to rescue him."

 Mabel felt her heart soar at his words. However it still didn't diminish the nagging whispers that told her she wouldn't be seeing her hatchmate for a good long while.

 

**````````**

 

 The sound of the trapdoor opening caused the blue-scaled siren to jump, whipping toward the noise. He scowled and hurriedly shoved the gag back into his mouth (he really should just sing this fool to sleep instead of pretending to be helpless with this piece of cloth between his lips) as the approaching pirate came into view. A massive dark-skinned man with a neutral expression unlocked the cell door, his eyes trained on Dipper. In his hands he carried a plate of raw fish. Dipper hoped his own face wasn't betraying the longing he felt as he stared at the meal. It had been at least five hours since he had been on this ship - he wasn't quite sure, time was difficult to tell down here in the dark - and already he was hungry.

 The pirate said nothing as he walked nearer, something akin to curiosity gleaming in his eyes. Thankfully that curiosity didn't lead to any frightening situations; he set the plate down on the floor and tilted his head at the creature for a moment, quiet.

 There was something about this pirate that didn't give him any unnerving feelings in his gut, unlike Cipher and Wormwood. Sure, he recognized this one from the boat when he had been captured, but he didn't look frightening. The man seemed more eager to simply study the siren instead of taunt him. He crossed his arms over his chest nonetheless, eyeing the much larger man with wariness.

 Amusement played on the other's lips, as well as an almost melancholy glint in his eyes. The lips twitched upward for a second before he sighed through his nose.

 "I see the captain hasn't been exactly welcoming." The human's voice was smooth and unusually deep. It was startling, but strangely soothing. "My apologies."

 Apologies? Dipper couldn't help himself, raising an eyebrow and tilting his own head at the pirate. Was he being sincere?

 As if sensing the siren's confusion, the pirate placed a hand on his broad chest and nodded at Dipper. "I am called Mollusk. Do you have a name?"

 Dipper pointed to his gag, unsure if this was a trick question. Was he trying to be funny, talking to him when he knew that Dipper wasn't supposed to respond? He could easily take down this larger man with his singing - one human, it would be like stealing seaweed from a baby - but something told him that wasn't the brightest idea. After all, it wasn't as if he could trot out of the tank and hop back into the sea once he incapacitated the pirate.

 Mollusk glanced at the trapdoor. He was quiet for a minute, studying the siren. While the distrust was not evident in his gaze, the siren was certain that it was lingering in the man.

 "You may remove the cloth if you need to."

 Dipper blinked in surprise. Was this a ruse? Surely Cipher had sent this much less irritating crew member down here to fool him into a false sense of security.

 "If you were going to try to sing, you would not have shoved that back in your mouth before I entered." Mollusk's lips twitched again as Dipper fidgeted uncomfortably in the tank, cursing internally at not realizing that the pirate must have seen him put the gag back in. "I am not afraid. Though if you do try anything rash, I _will_ have to get the captain. Surely you understand."

 Dipper nodded and hesitantly pulled the gag out between his lips, working his jaw as he let the cloth rest around his neck. He glanced at the pirate who watched him with interest. Either this man was stupid or genuinely didn't seem to think the siren could harm him. He wasn't sure which he believed was true.

 "Do you have a name?" Mollusk repeated his question, walking closer to the tank.

 "Y - Yes." He cursed his stutter, clearing his throat before he continued on. "Dipper."

 Mollusk raised a brow. "That is an intriguing name. You were named after the constellation, aye?"

 "No. It's a nickname." He didn't want to go into more detail than that. His real name wasn't widely known among the others in the colony and there was a reason he had taken after the nickname instead. At least he didn't spy the birthmark under his messy bangs.

 The larger man bent over, picking up the plate with the fish on it. Dipper's stomach gurgled against his will causing him to glower. If Mollusk heard the sound, he didn't say anything of it. "I was told to bring you food. The captain is irritated because you wouldn't give him information, but I could not let you starve."

 Dipper smirked as he pictured the annoying blond scowling and muttering to himself over how the siren refused to speak with him. Good. Served him right.

 The plate was offered to him over the top of the glass prison and he accepted it without a beat. His tail twisted painfully against the tank wall so he had to readjust so he didn't lose feeling in the lower half of his body. With a huff, Dipper scooped up the fish and began devouring it. It was strange how Mollusk watched him still, clearly interested in the brunette. He didn't know why. He would have thought that the crew would be scared of a siren onboard their ship. Was he truly not afraid? He had seen him attack a fellow pirate's hand when it grabbed him; did he not believe Dipper was dangerous?

 Loud chatter from up on the deck reached his ears, even down here in the brig. He strained to make out the words, discerning from the high-pitched noises that it must be the captain speaking. Was he giving a speech to the crew? He paused in his meal to frown.

 It was likely about him. Cipher was telling the others to be cautious around the siren or something along those lines. He snorted. Despite how intimidating the captain was, Dipper was sure that he was a bit afraid of what the siren was capable of. Heck, if their positions were reversed Dipper would definitely be terrified of a siren living onboard his ship.

 "What are you thinking about, Dipper?" Mollusk's voice brought him out of his thoughts.

 "Nothing," he lied, taking a big bite of the fish after he spoke. He paused to chew before going on, eyes darting to the massive pirate. "Is it morning?"

 "Yes. The sun was hardly rising earlier, so I waited to bring you food."

 "Why are you like this?" The words tumbled messily out of Dipper's mouth before he could rethink what he had asked.

 The pirate didn't look offended. He headed closer, arms resting with surprising gentleness on the top of the tank's edges.

 "What do you mean?"

 "You're bringing me food, you told me not to wear the gag, and you haven't said an unkind word to me yet," Dipper explained with his mouth full of fish. "Is this some kind of trick?"

 Mollusk's face shifted to mild bewilderment for a moment. "I don't have any reason to trick you."

 "You do realize that I could kill you easily," the scaled creature replied slowly. His fins flicked anxiously against the narrow wall of the tank.

 "That has crossed my mind, yes. But I could also kill you. Yet neither of us has made a move to do any such thing."

 Silence fell over the two in the dark brig. The sounds of Captain Cipher's speech were muffled but a couple of shouts from various pirates on deck were loud enough to be understood. Yes, he was definitely talking to them about the siren (why else would they have been yelling about 'that monster' and 'the wee devil' up there?).

 "I hope you do not mind my curiosity," Mollusk said, "but what brought you close to the isle when we arrived? When the captain discovered you, I mean. Surely you knew that humans were nearby."

 Dipper nodded and pretended to be interested in the bones protruding from the mess that once was a fish. "Of course. I was curious who had come. I did not intend to stay there as long as I did, though. Maybe if I hadn't none of this would have happened."

 "Everything happens for a reason, yes?"

 He snickered at that, wrinkling his nose as he fingered one of the slimy bones. "I guess. Wish I knew what that reason was."

 Mollusk eyed him for a couple of moments. "Indeed. Well, I do not know what the captain intends to do with you yet but for now perhaps try to relax."

 "Relax?" Dipper's eyebrows furrowed as he breathed out through his nose. His scales shifted against the narrow glass walls, discomfort and annoyance bubbling in vats in his gut. "How am I supposed to relax down here, trapped on a ship heading away from my home?"

 Something vaguely nostalgic crept into the other's eyes. Mollusk turned his gaze to the bones as well, watching how the siren ran the pads of his fingers over the texture of the sides. The latter was reminded of how Mabel used to rub his back when he had a nightmare, back when they were younger and less viable to getting into trouble. A lump caught in his throat and he swallowed hard. His fingers froze over the bone under his thumb, wishing she was here now. Well, not here, exactly. Just...somewhere that the two of them could be together and not have to worry about being kidnapped for who-knew-what by a pirate crew.

 "I know it is difficult." Dipper glanced up at the massive man's face. Had he been staring at the siren that entire time? "I know what it is like to be torn from your home without a choice."

 "No offense but I don't think you do," the siren mumbled, turning his head aside. Something about the way the man was staring at him made him feel uneasy. It wasn't the same as the way Cipher stared menacingly - no, there was a strange sense of quiet sadness behind his eyes. It made his stomach twist uncomfortably.

 Mollusk did not reply. Dipper shot a furtive glance back and was mildly surprised to see that the pirate was looking up, listening to whatever was going on up on deck. He crossed his arms over his chest, a clear sign that he was not interested in speaking about this topic any longer. Dipper almost wanted to ask what was the matter before remembering himself and where he was.

 After another ten minutes however, it grew irritating to sit in silence. The noise from above wasn't enough to drown out his inner thoughts and the bones in his hands were growing tedious to fiddle with. His tail cramped and he grimaced as he tried to adjust positions in the tank. They really had not been thinking of comfort when they found this glass prison, had they? He pictured the captain smirking and snickering when they put him in here and a scowl formed on his face. His spine rubbed against the glass and he groaned in annoyance, his head hitting the back of the tank as he glowered at the floorboards above.

 "Would you like for me to get you a bigger tank?"

 Dipper's head whipped to the pirate in astonishment, not expecting to see a soft look on the other's face. Again, his stomach flopped with something he didn't like to think on.

 "Is that a trick?"

 Mollusk snorted. "Are you normally this distrustful of everyone?"

 "It's called being _cautious_ ," Dipper snapped, folding his own arms over his chest. The pirate's lips twitched in amusement.

 "I just thought you looked uncomfortable, given by how much you're fidgeting about."

 The brunette was quiet for a moment, staring at the bones in his left hand. A small part of him hissed to not trust this man, that it was a trap, for him to just kill the pirate already. What was stopping him? He was trapped onboard a pirate ship heading to who-knows-where (after whatever it was they needed to do on the island) and there was likely going to be some form of torture or pain at the end of this path. Why couldn't he just _try_ to escape?

  _Because I won't make it ten feet from this tank without flopping on the floor like a dying fish,_ he reminded himself.

 But why was this pirate different from Cipher? For all he knew, this was simply an act to get him to talk.

  _Did you see the look in his eyes? He hasn't made one move to hurt you. It's like he's off in his own world._

 Dipper sighed and brought his blue tail closer to his body, flinching at how his fins ached.

 "That...That would be nice."

 Mollusk nodded and the two looked up as Cipher yelled something up above. Dipper rolled his eyes as he heard grumbling from someone else. Jeez, how long was he going to yell at his crew?

 "I do not believe you are in any immediate danger being onboard _The Mindscape_. The captain is more irritated than bloodthirsty right now." Dipper glanced at Mollusk, who had not taken his gaze off of the floorboards above them.

 "Is he normally bloodthirsty?" Memories of sirens' mouths opening mid-scream as they were struck in the stomach flashed in his mind against his bidding. Red staining the ocean as Stan and Ford ushered him and his hatchmate to retreat, to swim for the cave _now_. Mabel screaming and pulling on his arm as he stared in horrorat everyone floating to the surface, scarlet bubbling around them. He felt ill and had to focus on clearing his head to look at the pirate again. Now wasn't the time to remember those things.

 The fact that the man had to pause to think over the question was not reassuring. "No. That is not the right word to describe Captain Cipher. He is more... _violent_. Both with his temper and in battle. He does not control his temper very well."

 "I can imagine," Dipper muttered, tossing aside the bones as he lost interest in them.

 "You do not want to see him when he's angry," Mollusk warned. For the first time something dark made itself known in the other's eyes, glimmering with an emotion he could not understand. It swiftly vanished as Mollusk regained his composure. The siren wondered briefly what that was about. "It is easy to aggravate him, but taking it too far is not wise."

  _"He's_ the one who is irritating."

 The end of the man's mouth twitched ever-so-slightly upward. "He has a tendency to be that way."

 Dipper shot the other a glare, startling nervously in the water as a particularly loud couple of shouts reached their ears. The noise escalated up on deck, making him wonder what that was about. It seemed like the captain was having a difficult time controlling his crew.

 "Why is he so...?"

 Mollusk raised an eyebrow. "Strange?"

 "I was going to say 'rude'," Dipper muttered, and the large man chuckled. The sound was oddly soothing.

 "I suppose he is. He doesn't always mean to be. The captain is...hard to explain."

 "How long have you been on this ship?"

 Mollusk walked closer, a thoughtful expression creasing his features. "Around six years now."

 The brunette's eyes widened and he found himself twisting a little to face the pirate more. " _Six?_ Don't you miss your home?"

 It was rather frightening how dark the other's face became, hands clenching tightly onto his biceps as he stared at something the siren could not see.

 "I have not had a home since I was three years old, Dipper. This ship is the closest place I have to one."

 

**````````**

 

 In the darkness of the ocean as a pink-scaled female slept, two figures whispered in the dark to each other.

 "We can't let them leave the island, if what Dipper said was true. You know they'll go to the mainland and we'll have no control over what happens from there."

 "We cannot just swim up to the ship and expect to take down an entire vessel with us two alone."

 "Sitting around here won't do any good either, Ford! Do you really think any of the colony will help? You know what assholes they are!"

 "Stanley!"

 There was a huff of irritation. "I'm not wrong."

 A pause.

 "I know. I know you want to get him back, I'm scared for him too. Humans are ruthless. Don't think I've forgotten that."

 "Then we have to leave. In the morning."

 A soft sigh left the lips of the one by the wall of the cave.

 "Wendy said she would bring those friends of Mabel's here as well. Hopefully having company will ease her worries while we are gone."

 "I hope he's doing alright."

 "Me too, Stanley. Me too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *nervous laughter* So, I may have forgotten to mention that I was doing NaNoWriMo, and I postponed writing for anything else other than that? Sorry. I know I need to update this, as well as The Art of Delusion. Hopefully this chapter was satisfying though, for those of you who have been waiting for an update.
> 
> Mollusk and Wormwood are not minor characters, in case you haven't guessed that by now. Mollusk is more of a gentle giant - think: Fezzik from Princess Bride - and offers Bill advice occasionally because the guy trusts him a lot. However when he gets pissed...run. Just...run. As for Wormwood, he's an ass obviously. But I swear he actually has a heart and isn't entirely suspicious of everything.
> 
> If any of you are interested in my original story that I was working on (still working on, sigh) for NaNoWriMo, check out the "Monachopsis" tag on my tumblr (callonielb).


	5. Conversing with a Young Lass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which girl talk is briefly relevant and cannon fire is abound.

  _Swimming through blood-stained water. He couldn't see which way was up or down - there was only the fear of being caught._

 _Oh, no. Mabel was screaming for him - no, was it Stan? Or Ford? - and he felt his eyes growing heavier. It was as if his tail was hollowed out and stuffed with the heaviest sea turtle you could find. Every movement was sluggish and despite his neck hairs prickling because_ DANGER WAS NEARBY _, he wondered if it would be easier to give up._

_Give up._

_Give in._

_What would happen if he just floated here in this rust-colored water forever? Surely he would be fine._

_Screaming._

_Hands in his hair, tugging and yanking with all their might._

_High-pitched laughter echoing in his head, throughout the whole vastness of the ocean, and a pair of dark cruel eyes._

_Longing...._

_What was he longing for, exactly?_

_Maybe he couldn't relax just now. He frowned and glanced back, slow and heavy, small bubbles streaming around his lithe form. What was even chasing him?_

_Then a flash of those dark eyes - why were they so familiar? - and he heard dual sounds of screaming, one of which he recognized too late as his own. He needed to get out, he had to, he was going to -_

 The bucket of cold water that was dumped over his head caused the siren to cry out and he writhed at the chilly sensation before realizing that it was only Cipher. Dipper gave the man a scathing glare but the other merely smirked as he tossed aside the bucket.

 "Rise and shine, fish face! It's another lovely morning."

 Dipper wanted to tell the blond to go away but he knew it would only give the other satisfaction so he continued to glare quietly. The captain's smirk twitched at the lack of response and his eye narrowed.

 "Ah, not talking again? I see you've removed my little precaution anyway." With a start, Dipper glanced down at his neck and realized in a rush that he was supposed to be wearing the gag. He hadn't been able to sleep with the stupid thing between his lips last night so he had simply pulled it out. He must have forgotten all about his current situation to not remember that Cipher was going to be angry if he wasn't wearing it.

 Oh, but it didn't really matter anyways. After all, it was a sign that the blond was frightened of what he could do. Dipper bit back a small smirk at the thought. Who was he to force a siren to wear something as useless as a gag when he should have guessed that it wasn't like Dipper could do much to escape anyway?

 As if sensing the siren's mood change, the captain snorted and leaned forward over the top of the tank, casting a shadow down on Dipper who scowled. "I'm guessing you're finally going to tell me about this colony of yours, if you're so eager to get rid of that rule we established. Hmmm?"

 There was no way Dipper was going to tell this monster where the colony was residing but he also didn't know what the captain would do if he said nothing. Was he threatening to put the gag back in? He could handle himself in a fight against this human, probably, given how he had the advantage with his voice and claws. The blond would taste a lot better than raw fish. He worked his jaw for a moment, eyeing the captain carefully.

 "Oh, don't tell me you're getting shy on me now," Cipher teased, though his eye glittered dangerously. His grip tightened on the tank and the siren knew this was a subtle warning. "Either that or I really picked the dumbest of the lot."

 Dipper snorted at the lame jab at his intellignce. He could at least come up with _something_ better than petty taunts to get him to speak. After all, he had dealt with worse from other sirens when he was younger.

 Cipher raised a brow at the other's response, looking down his nose (literally) at the creature. "Seriously, kid, this is starting to get annoying."

 He bristled for a moment at being called a child before looking away, feigning indifference.

 "Well, I suppose you _don't_ want me to tell you that we found your little _friend,_ then?"

 Every blood cell in Dipper's scaled form froze. He felt as if he couldn't breathe and he _knew_ that the captain was bound to be smirking but he couldn't stop himself from closing his eyes tightly.

  _Please be lying. Please be lying._

 "Oh, yeah. The girl one, right? She's up on deck."

  _Please be lying._

 "I think the men are having fun poking at her. How long should I leave them up there with her, do you think?"

  _Please._

 "You're lying." His voice was quiet from lack of use since his talk with Mollusk. He hated how it cracked and he didn't dare open his eyes.

 He could hear the smirk in the other's voice. "Am I?"

 Dipper's head turned up and he opened his eyes with hesitation, instantly wanting to claw the smug look off of the man's face. Anger blazed in his stomach.

 "You wouldn't... You wouldn't leave her up there with them."

 "And why is that?" He _hated_ the condescending tone Cipher was using, how he was acting like Dipper was a shy human child. The hatred caused his eyes to narrow and gave him the courage to snap out his next words.

 "Because the crew is terrified of sirens, including you, and you had to have a talk with them yesterday to even get them to stop worrying about me eating them. Which is stupid, frankly, because if I wanted to kill you everyone would be dead already."

 Captain Cipher's expression shifted into one of anger halfway through the first sentence and by the time Dipper stopped speaking, he suddenly found that he _really_ didn't like the return of the dark look to the singular working eye of the human's.

 "And what makes you think," Cipher said softly, almost too soft to be heard, "that I am _terrified_ of you?"

 Memories of singing to the blond earlier came back to mind. He recalled the furious expression on the other's face as he slunk back under the waves.

 "Why else would you try and silence a siren in a cramped fish tank?" Dipper spat back.

 He yelped as fingers entwined themselves in Dipper's brown hair and panic set in as the memory of his capture flitted around his head. Cipher's expression now was ice cold and the siren was reminded eerily of a shark looking over its prey. He held back a grimace of pain as he was yanked up, almost nose-to-nose with the captain who didn't seem to care that he was hurting the creature.

 "Let's get one thing straight, smartass," the captain hissed as he tightened his grasp on the brown locks. "If I were afraid of you, you would be served on a platter for my crew for dinner. However I'm not impartial to the option if you don't learn your place. I'm sure it wouldn't be too difficult to find the rest of your kind even without your help. So unless you want to find out what the inside of the galley looks like, I suggest that you keep your mouth _shut_."

 Dipper breathed in shakily at the intensity of the other's gaze, wishing he could spew back threats just as easily as Cipher did. Maybe then the man would take him seriously. Still, his stomach churned as he thought of being dinner to a bunch of greasy assholes or of the colony fleeing from cannon fire on the waves. He shut his eyes, fighting back the urge to vomit as unbidden memories arose from the depths of his mind.

 "Now do I need to bind your hands and do something more drastic about silencing you or are you going to cooperate?"

 The trapdoor to the deck burst open before either of them could move, throwing sunlight into the brig, and Dipper squinted as his eyes struggled to adjust to the harsh brightness. Cipher didn't loosen his grip on his hair but his attention did divert to whomever was coming down. He faintly made out a scowl on the blond's face.

 "What is it?" he snarled. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

 "Captain, Wormwood believes he has found something in the map." Dipper realized that Mollusk was the one at the top of the stairs leading down to the brig. As his vision adjusted gradually he saw that the man was looking between Bill and Dipper with an unreadable expression.

 Cipher grumbled under his breath, dropping Dipper back into the tank water, and glowered at the pirate. "It had better be important."

 "He says it is."

 The blond snorted and followed Mollusk up and out of the brig, closing the door with a loud _BANG!_ Before they were out of sight, the brunette could have sworn that he saw Mollusk frown in his direction, something akin to concern in his eyes.

 

**````````**

 

 It was infuriating.

 Mabel appreciated her friends. She honestly did. She could hardly recall a time when she had been apart from Candy and Grenda ever since she had stumbled upon the two hiding out by a coral reef on their own, none of the other sirens willing to race with them. Wendy was fun to hang out with as well, telling her of all the dangerous things she had done lately with her crew of friends (all older than her and Dipper by at least a few years and nearly ready to start mating, which was a strange thought). The redhead was akin to an older hatchmate to her, one who didn't gawk at the idea of braiding her hair with seaweed and smaller shells.

 That didn't change the fact that it made it even worse to hear them chat in her cave beside her while she stared distantly out into the sea, wondering if there was a possibility that Dipper was too far for the Stans to rescue him.

 "Oh, Mabel!" The brunette hesitantly turned back to Grenda, who was a bit wider than the three other females. The ecstatic look in her eyes made a brief flutter of guilt clench in Mabel's gut. "You'll never guess what happened the other day! I was telling Candy all about it and - oh, I wish you could meet him!"

 "She met a siren," Candy whispered although everyone in the cave could hear her perfectly. A broad smile split across her pale cheeks. "And he asked her to sing with him!"

 Despite her inner turmoil, Mabel smiled for her friend. "Really? It wasn't Gideon, was it?"

 Wendy shuddered from where she was floating beside the far wall. "Ugh, isn't that the guy with white hair who - ?"

 "Tried to mate with me when I was _twelve?_ Unfortunately, yeah. But I've heard that he's been trying to be nicer these days," Mabel frowned at the thought. "Anyway, who is it, Grenda?"

 "He's got long brown hair." Grenda giggled as she concentrated on his description, exchanging a knowing look with Candy. "Ooh, and he has an accent! I'm not sure what it is exactly but he has these ruby red scales that are super cute. His name is Marius."

 An inner voice that sounded suspiciously like her hatchmate snorted. _Is that really better than Gideon?_

 She waved aside that voice and gave a giggle of her own. "He sounds handsome. Good for you, Grenda! You go get your mate!"

 "Grenda's mate!" Candy cheered on.

 Grenda blushed and pushed Candy away (though it was a little too rough - the poor girl didn't know her own strength). "You guys. It's just singing."

 "That's pretty important, girl," Wendy pointed out, waggling a finger. "Being asked to sing with another siren is important in establishing if they could be your mate. Although my first time singing with Robbie was kind of boring."

 "You just haven't met the right siren," Mabel told her as she patted the green scales on the larger siren's tail. "Wendy's right, Grenda. This is huge! If this siren is as hunky as you make him sound then you could find yourself a mate! I totally want to meet him now."

 "Me too!"

 Grenda gave a deep giggle, her blush darkening as her smile turned bashful. "Aw, thanks you guys. If it goes well I will invite him over to meet you all." Wendy and Candy cheered, though the latter's was a bit more enthusiastic. Mabel merely smiled before looking back out at the open sea.

 Melancholy gripped her heart once more. Her smile slid swiftly off her cheeks as Grenda went on to talk more about her expectations for the singing session with Marius. She wondered what Dipper would have said about the possibility of finding a mate. When they were younger the two had joked about finding theirs at the same time because together they were bound to be irresistible. As they grew more apart in personality however, she discovered that Dipper started thinking less about mates and playing together and more on exploring the world around them. "It's a big open sea, ripe for adventure," he had once told her. "Why wouldn't I want to explore? Can you imagine the kind of things we could find up on the surface?"

 Of course Ford had at first delighted in teaching the siren about creatures up on the surface and of the island nearby. Mabel hadn't taken much interest in it, thinking there would be more time later to study those sorts of things. After all, shouldn't she live in the now and try to have fun with her friends? Exploring could always happen later.

 Now she would give the whole ocean to be able to go back to those days if it meant seeing Dipper again.

 Tears stung her eyes and she rubbed at them angrily. If only she had not been so _stupid_ and gotten caught by those humans. Maybe then Dipper would be here and not who-knew-where with Stan and Ford rushing out together to bring him back before it was too late. It was all her fault.

 And that little tidbit of knowledge was the most infuriating part about it all.

 

**````````**

 

 It seemed like ages before Mollusk returned to the brig, carrying two fish in one of his giant fists. Dipper's eyes lit up and he restrained himself from lunging for the food as the larger human came closer, not wanting to appear too eager. Mollusk seemed not to care anyways; he tossed the fish to the siren and merely chuckled when he began tearing away at the meat. He sat down beside the tank against the wall, intently listening to the splashing of the waves outside. Dipper paused in his actions to watch this and cocked his head to the side a little.

 "What are you doing that for?"

 "Sometimes it sounds as if the ocean is speaking in its own tongue," Mollusk replied cryptically. "I like to listen to it."

 The siren's brow furrowed. "You say that as if it is alive."

 This merely made the pirate shrug. "Perhaps not to you, but to me... I have grown up listening to these waves. The words they form when they strike the hull, the dull roar in the midst of a storm, the quiet whispers at night when we anchor..." He shook his head. A familiar nostalgia crept back into Mollusk's eyes. "It is as if it speaks to me."

 Dipper nodded although he didn't quite understand. He had grown up in the ocean all his life and never felt anything such as this strange feeling the pirate described. To him the sea felt bottomless and yet... His jaw stiffened at the realization that swept over him.

  _And yet, like a prison._

 "I hope the captain did not harm you too badly earlier." Those words snapped him out of his thoughts and Dipper shook his head.

 "No. He was just threatening me, saying he was growing annoyed."

 Mollusk sighed. "I believe he wants to find the colony soon, or else he will stick to a different course of action."

 "How so?"

 A brief pause occurred before Mollusk spoke. It felt tentative, as if he were unsure of how to proceed when he spoke next. Dipper took the opportunity to return to devouring his meal, his stomach grumbling lowly.

 "To put it in perspective when we discovered our new destination, the crew was eager to go on despite hearing strange things of this part of the ocean. The captain believed none of it, saying it was ridiculous that we thought to trust a rambling man's words over his own. He, of course, had heard rumors of how others had to find their way around the island but wanted to pursue it on his own path. But then, he came upon you and - well, he is no longer ignoring those warnings."

 That didn't sound like a good thing. "Why did it change because of me?"

 The dark-skinned man glanced up at him with an unreadable expression. "Our captain heard that the way to uncover the treasure within the island was through the use of a siren. We all believed they were myths, folklore made up by old fishermen to scare us off. I think Captain Cipher now believes that if we find the rest of your colony, it will give the crew a better chance of finding it."

 Dipper nearly choked on his meal. His brown eyes bulged as he gawked at Mollusk. Treasure? On the island? No, there couldn't be - Ford had never mentioned any of the such when he had been studying with the elder siren. Besides, wouldn't that be something everyone would try to protect? (Though now that he thought of it, this _would_ explain why they got so many unexpected visitors that soon became meals.)

 As he processed this, Mollusk's words about finding the colony sank in fully and a sense of utter dread settled in his gut. If Cipher truly believed that he was going to find treasure on the shore with the help of the entire colony - and there was a possibility of _none of them_ actually knowing about the treasure - then the others were in trouble. No wonder the human had been pressing him so fiercely about it. The fish he had been devouring suddenly made him feel ill as he stared down at it.

 "Uh, what did you mean before?" Dipper asked anxiously, trying not to panic as he shifted in the cramped tank. "About him finding a 'different course of action'?"

 Mollusk looked up at Dipper and for a moment he had the feeling that the other could see right through to his thinly veiled uneasiness. "If he does not find the colony then I presume we would simply continue on to the island with you to guide us there instead, Dipper."

 He was about to truly begin panicking and possibly explaining to the pirate that _he had no idea where or what this treasure even was_ when the ship suddenly tilted sharply to the left and the tank nearly took off Mollusk's head as it tumbled toward the wall. Dipper gave a yell as he tried to hold onto something, _anything_ , as it slammed hard against the porthole, which was now partway under the surface of the sea. Mollusk was barely gripping onto the bars of the brig, his weight giving it a slight dip as he struggled to find some kind of footing. Water came rushing in from the shattered porthole beside the siren and the tank (which was miraculously not shattered into a million shards) and the two could hear roars from above them, likely from the crew.

 "What is going on?" Dipper asked, backing up in his almost empty tank. He pondered seeing if he could fit out the porthole as a means of escape to the ocean but he immediately dismissed that thought when he realized there was no way he could fit in such a small space. "What could have knocked the ship over like this?"

 It was through a flash of something thick and elongated out the porthole that he gained his answer. The appendage wrapped itself around the edge of the porthole, large suction cups clinging to the wood of _The Mindscape._ Cold dread filled his heart as he recalled a lesson Ford had taught him about such a creature - what had he called it? - and the warnings he had given on its size.

  _"Never pick a fight with anything larger than you are, Dipper. Unless you have the upper hand, it is not worth the risk no matter what Stanley says about punching those things. Especially a kraken. One of those will not stop and pardon a small siren even if they are capsizing a ship. We've been lucky that they mainly go after humans now, since most sea creatures leave them be. Those tentacles are not something you want to mess with."_

 Oh. That had been what Ford had called it. A kraken.

 Just his luck.

 "It must be that monster there," Mollusk was saying, nodding towards the tentacle visible to the two of them as it tightened its grip on the ship. "I have never seen such an octopus of this size before however."

 "Not an octopus," Dipper corrected. He fought down the bile rising in his throat as he heard a small slurping sound from the suction cups. "This is a kraken."

 "A what?"

 "They're like gigantic squids but...so much bigger. They capsize ships and devour its crew if they haven't already drowned." It was difficult to fight back the panic in his chest, wanting to scramble back farther than the wall of this glass tank to get away from the huge monster. Perhaps it was a good thing he had not tried to escape via porthole after all.

 Mollusk seemed to be just as nervous about the situation. He grimaced as he hooked his right leg around a bar so as not to fall into the tentacle on the now inclined brig. "I do not suppose you know of a way to get rid of it?"

 Dipper shook his head, yelping again as the ship trembled and shifted ever-so-slightly under the grasp of the creature. The screaming up on deck didn't help ease his fears, instead causing his tail to shake out of fright. He wished that he had thought to ask more about the kraken when Ford had mentioned it, wished that he wasn't so useless trapped inside this ship. The ocean was pooling in from the porthole still, giving him about six inches of water to move about in if he so desired but it wouldn't be enough to escape or to find a way out of this dilemma so he stayed put. It wasn't as if he could sing to put the kraken to sleep either - only humans and other sirens were somewhat affected by the singing, and it was mainly used for mating or feeding. No other sea creatures would be lingering around such a dangerous beast so _The Mindscape_ was on its own.

 Terror clenched its fist around his heart and the siren glanced back at the pirate whose features were forced into one of an unnervingly calm nature. Mollusk had seemed to judge that fear was not going to assist them in getting out of this alive and had readjusted his grip on the bars to peer around the space for anything of use.

 "I am certain that the crew are searching for a way to fight off this beast," he assured Dipper. "Captain Cipher will not be deterred by its size."

 It wasn't the kraken's size that was worrying the siren. Dipper bit back a shout of protest as the ship rocked sharply to the left once more and the tank pressed him against the wall further as the water poured in in waves. Mollusk grimaced as his grip momentarily slipped on the bar, clearly having a difficult time holding on. Up on deck the brief sound of a pistol going off (something Dipper had unfortunately witnessed a few times during feedings that had gone wrong) could be heard and the creature shuddered before yanking harder on _The Mindscape_ 's rigging.

 "They cannot defeat the kraken with mere pistols!" Dipper told Mollusk remembering what Ford had mentioned so long ago. "This creature is stronger than the might of a fleet of ships. Guns are mere nuisances to them."

 A great clamor arose from somewhere near the side of the ship, loads of yelling and orders being given. He hoped it was for their benefit because otherwise this ship would go down in a few minutes.

 Mollusk seemed to tense slightly as he too heard these noises, although it didn't seem to be in the same nature as the brunette was currently feeling. In an offer of explanation, he said to Dipper, "They remembered the cannons."

 

**````````**

 

 Captain Bill Cipher had indeed not forgotten about the artillery below. He cursed himself for being so slow and sent a group of five down to fire upon the wretched beast as most of the crew fought to regain their balance.

  _Of course_ they were going to be attacked by a gigantic squid. First the stubborn siren below and now this twist of fate.

 It must have snuck up upon them. He had been discussing the map with Wormwood (whom luckily had managed to decipher part of the phrase near the middle of the parchment that they had been struggling with) when Kryptos had spotted something moving near the hull from the crow's nest - and then those blasted tentacles had struck down that very spot where he had stood, grappling with the sides of the _Mindscape._ Thankfully only about six of the crew had toppled over the side thanks to Kryptos' inept timing so it hadn't become a tragedy _yet._ There was also that one imbecile who had tried to fire upon the monster before the rocking had grown _worse_ \- which Cipher made note of to flay him for that later. There still lay an issue in improvising a way to get rid of the damn thing, however, and unfortunately none of them had encountered anything as large as this squid.

 Wormwood, who clung to the map (at least _he_ had kept his head, no wonder this one was first mate) and the wheel with the captain, shot an anxious look back at the man. "You honestly think the cannons are going to drive this beast off?"

 "Are you questioning your captain's orders?" There was little heat to his voice but the underlying threat was still audible.

 Wormwood had gotten used to Cipher's temper enough to roll his eyes at the other despite his obvious fright over the giant squid.

 "No, sir. I just don't think they're going to be enough."

 Cipher chewed his lip and grimaced as the ship shook in the grasp of the tentacles once more. A couple of the slimy devils slithered through the air with a mind of their own, snaking around the deck. Multitudes of crew members had decided that fighting back was probably in their best interest and had begun swiping at the tentacles with their blades, silver flashing in the air as a hideous roar echoed from the depths of the sea. Pyronica even went far enough to leap onto the nearest appendage and hack at it as it tossed her about.

 No one could say that the crew of the _Mindscape_ wasn't courageous in the face of imminent demise. He nearly chuckled to himself at the thought.

 "You might be correct in that, Wormwood," he admitted to the first mate. "However until we find a better form of attack then perhaps it is best to dream."

 Wormwood opened his mouth to protest again likely when Cipher spotted two of the slithering appendages heading straight for the wheel. The blond swore and drew his sword before bellowing, "Dive to the side!"

 Luckily the other was excellent when it came to obeying orders - Wormwood dropped towards the rail now halfway in the ocean and caught the back rail of the ship, grunting as he pulled himself up as quickly as he could, out of reach of the tentacles. Cipher himself threw his weight toward the stairs leading down to the deck, gripping the wood above him with one hand to steady his balance. The two tentacles that would have crushed them both smashed into the wheel, splintering the wood and sending it flying before their eyes.

 Cipher ground his teeth together as he watched the horrific sight. If only he were as large as this squid, he would show this monster why no one messed with the One-Eyed Demon.

 "Captain!"

 His attention was brought to the frightened cry from one of the newest members, a young redhead about nineteen whose leg was being yanked on by a tentacle despite his desperate stabs with his knife. Before he could react, the young lad was thrown into the air off the vessel, screaming as he plunged into the sea and pulled below the dark surface. Cipher's grip tightened on the wood visibly.

  _Where were those ignoramuses with those cannons?_

 If they weren't going to do anything of this situation while they were down below, it left no other choice. The captain growled low in his throat and glanced at his first mate who managed to hold off the monster on his part by slicing a wandering appendage in half causing the creature to shriek obscenely loud.

 "Wormwood!"

 Said dark-haired man locked gazes with Cipher immediately, his face already reddening due to his straining arms. He, nevertheless, let go and lunged for the captain's outstretched hand so that they could both stand inches apart on the tilted stairs. A grave expression crossed his face as he took in the seriousness of the other's stance.

 "How long do you think we have before those damn cannons go off?"

 "Less than two minutes given that they haven't been drowned by the beast, captain."

 Cipher bit back another curse. He hadn't even considered the fact that the giant squid had plundered their ship through the left side already. Well, that was something that they would need to have faith in for the moment.

 "Assuming that they're fine and dandy, how many of these snaking _things_ could we do away with before then to buy us some time?"

 Wormwood's dark eyes lit up as he saw where this was going. "If we don't fall over then quite a few."

 "Right, enough with the morbid talk," Cipher muttered with a shake of his head though a wicked grin was stretching over his cheeks now. "Now let's get to work, aye?"

 Before another word could be said he leapt for one of the sails that had not ripped when the attack had begun and grappled briefly for a hold on the wood. Unsheathing his gleaming steel blade the pirate struck at the tentacle wound around the base of it, drawing out a hearty shriek from the gigantic beast and a bit of blood as its hold slackened. He didn't let up, dropping down to chop apart the appendage. Its remaining half slunk hurriedly back into the ocean like a dog licking its wounds. The ship rocked again as if warring with its own hull before tilting more toward the sky as it should, which allowed for Cipher to regain his footing better.

 He snuck a glance back at the others and his maniac grin only widened upon seeing the momentary relief in their eyes fade into determination as they too set themselves upon the creature. It appeared that the rest of the crew weren't eager to be devoured after all. A wicked cackle rose from his throat as he watched more of the tentacles shoot up from beneath the briny waves to assault the pirates.

  _Well, that wasn't going to do, now was it?_ Cipher mused to himself internally as his grin turned cruel.

 The blond climbed up the rigging once more and swung over to the next mast held captive in the grasp of the squid on one of the now torn ropes. He dodged the flailing appendage's path as it made for his neck and swung upward, cleaving it roughly in two. Another took its place fairly swiftly but was much quicker in meeting the same bloody fate. More and more agonized screeches were piercing the air, each growing louder and more inhuman as the _Mindscape_ was dealt blow after blow by the enormous creature.

 Cipher made short work of the newest supplement darting towards him, pausing only for a moment to wipe the red splashed on his face from the cleaving. Surely this little exercise would keep the beast at bay for a short while until the real punches reeled in on their end. The _Mindscape_ creaked and groaned under the strain of the tight grasp of the additional tentacles entangled around the sides holding the ship in place, so those little devils would have to be destroyed as well. After all, this squid likely had a vast multitude of other tentacles it was not yet unleashing upon the crew just yet. If anything this did not appear to be a dumb creature.

  _Speaking of dumb creatures,_ hissed a small nagging voice near the edges of his adrenalized mind, _is that damn siren still down in his tank?_

 Damn it all. His grin slipped off his face within seconds. He should have remembered that obstinate fish boy beforehand. Now they might have lost their chance at finding that island's treasure - which was entirely unacceptable.

 Perhaps this called for a change in strategy.

 And, of course, right as these words crossed his mind, those _bloody cannons_ finally went off one-by-one, each hitting their marks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I... I am so sorry for not updating. However, I have had a very serious case of writer's block for about three months now and I haven't been able to write more than a few paragraphs of things before feeling sick of my own writing. I have so much to update too, ugh.
> 
> I do plan on at least continuing this story (though who knows where this is even going because I only have a vague idea at this point) as well as The Art of Delusion. This of course depends on how much free time I have and my willingness to write. Thank you for those who have left kind comments on my stories so far though, because I really do appreciate it.


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